The 2022 quarterback carousel was scheduled to be one of the greatest in recent memory. Yesterday, two of the biggest dominoes fell. First, at about noon eastern, the Packers and Aaron Rodgers agreed to terms on a new contract extension. While those terms haven’t been finalized per Rodgers and his best friend Pat McAfee, the Packers committed to their two-time defending MVP for the next few seasons.
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Hey everyone, just wanted to clear some things up; YES I will be playing with the @packers next year, however, reports about me signing a contract are inaccurate, as are the supposed terms of the contract I “signed”. I’m very excited to be back 💪🏼 #year18❤️
— Aaron Rodgers (@AaronRodgers12) March 8, 2022
Seahawks/Broncos Trade
About an hour and a half later, the Green Bay signal caller’s day of sunshine was taken away by perhaps the biggest trade in the last two decades. There had been rumors that Seattle’s Russell Wilson was looking for or available for trade. Those murmurs continuously rose and dived throughout the start of the offseason and ramped back up when reports came out that the Washington Commanders had offered a massive deal to try and acquire the Seattle quarterback.
After the news that Rodgers was staying, many expected the Denver Broncos to be out of the quarterback market since Rodgers seemed to be their top option. Instead, the Broncos found a backup option. That backup option was Wilson. The Broncos packaged the ninth and 40th pick in this year’s draft, first and second-round picks in the 2023 draft, and a fifth-round pick this year, plus Drew Lock, Shelby Harris, and Noah Fant, in exchange for Wilson and a fourth-round pick this year.
After searching since Peyton Manning‘s retirement for a new quarterback, it seems that the Broncos have finally found their man. In a division with Patrick Mahomes and Justin Herbert, the Broncos finally have a quarterback that can compete and bring them to the playoffs and compete for a Super Bowl in the loaded AFC. Along with that, the Broncos also have to compete against the likes of the Bills and Bengals, who both have young superstars at the position.
Drew Lock
The two young quarter Lock is only 25 years old and goes to Seattle with 21 starts in his career. While Lock didn’t necessarily pan out for the Broncos, he heads to Seattle with a fresh start and a chance to revive his career. The former second-round selection enters Seattle with two great receivers and a familiar face in Fant. With Geno Smith listed as a free agent, Lock and Jacob Eason are the only quarterbacks on the Seattle roster at this time. The Seahawks are likely to add another player via trade, free agency, or the draft to compete for the starting job.
Jordan Love
With Rodgers extended, the Packers almost have to trade their 2020 first-round selection. The former Utah State will be entering his third year in the league. While his limited playing time has come with a few bumps and bruises along the way, quarterback-needy teams may offer as high as an early second-round pick for the developmental prospect. Love has sat behind Rodgers for the past two seasons, and while it seems the Packers don’t have him in their plans anymore, Green Bay should do the right thing by sending him to a team that he could start on.
The Green Bay quarterback is still only 23-years-old and has two years remaining on his rookie contract before the fifth-year option. Another benefactor for whatever team trades for Love is his low cost. The former first-round selection only accounts for $3.4 million this year and a touch under $4 million next year. Love should be a hot commodity for teams looking for a starter or competition for a struggling starter.
The free agent class isn’t the greatest. Jameis Winston, Mitchell Trubisky, and Marcus Mariota are the prime candidates to compete for a starting job from the free agent class. In addition, the draft class is very underwhelming, and Sam Howell, Malik Willis, and Desmond Ridder are the only players in the class who are younger than the third-year pro.
What Teams Make Sense?
There are a few teams that make sense for the former first-round pick. The Commanders make sense because they’ve been linked to multiple quarterbacks and have been calling seemingly every organization looking for a new signal-caller through a trade. The New Orleans Saints also make a ton of sense with Sean Payton now gone and Winston as an impending free agent. Maybe the Pittsburgh Steelers call Brian Gutekunst since the Steelers have a fantastic run game and weapons around him. Teams like Tennessee or New York could bring the young quarterback in to compete for the starting job with starters that have struggled.
The Best Fit
The best fit for Love is the Seahawks. Yes, they just added Lock via the Wilson trade. There have also been reports that Seattle is shopping Tyler Lockett and releasing or trading Bobby Wagner late last night. In the new scheme in Seattle, the play-action passing attack benefits Love. He is at his best when he’s on the move and throwing to receivers downfield with a great run game. The unfortunate thing here is that the Seahawks don’t have the best offensive line.
To push this point further, let’s look back to 2018 and 2019. In 2018, the Packers traded up in the draft with the Seattle Seahawks to take Jaire Alexander. Later that same year in the preseason, the Packers shipped Brett Hundley to the Seahawks for a sixth-round pick. In 2019, the Packers moved up with the Seahawks again, with Green Bay selecting Darnell Savage.
General Manager John Schneider started his career with the Packers in the scouting department in 1993 and returned to Green Bay from 2002-2009, where his role was the director of football operations. So, Schneider has plenty of ties with the Packers and Gutekunst.
The Ideal Trade
The Packers won’t be getting back what they paid for their young signal-caller. Love has played sparingly due to the superstar in front of him at the quarterback spot. That hurts Green Bay in a potential trade. With two second-round selections, Seattle can send their latest one, pick 41, to the Packers for Love and a fifth-round pick. This way, Seattle has a developmental quarterback who can start right away, and Green Bay gets value for their former first-round quarterback.
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